Punctuating device fob registers



April 1951 H. NEUMANN-LEZIUS ETAL 2,549,512

PUNCTUATiNG DEVICE FOR REGISTERS Filed Sept. 14, 1949 Patented Apr. 17, 1951 PUNCTUATINGDEVICE FOR REGISTERS;

Hans Neumann-Lezius" and Ernst-EberhardWilberg Brunswick, Germany, assignors Brunsviga Maschinenwerke Aktiengesells'chaft, Brunswick, Germany Application September. 14, 1949, Serial No..115,622 Iii Germany ctober4, 1948 8 Claims:

The present invention relates to a counting mechanism which may form a self-contained separate unit or a part of an adding machine-a calculating machine, or the like.

The invention aims at providing a simple,

readily interchangeable and easily operable device which serves in connection-with'a counting mechanism for moving to the left or to the right,-

number sub-dividing signsye. gxcommas or other signs suitable to sub-divide or to group numbers,

and which doesnot interrupt thesmooth outer surface of the casing of "the machine; affectthe visibility of the numbers inthe-counting machine, or produce undesirable-shadows.

This object is achieved according tothe in vention in that in a counting mechanism having a device for displaying movable signs for the subdivision of thenumber displayed by the counting mechanism, a row of windows for the signs'is arranged in the casing of a counting, mechanism adjacent to the row of windowsor the like for displaying the number, the number of windows in the first row being one less than the number in the second row, and their position being be-' tween theother windows; and a cylinder marked" with two colored helical bands or colored dots along two helical lines (i. e. bands whichareeither continuous or interrupted) which are parallel to each other and provided with an operating knob is arranged behind the first row of windows, the pitch of the helices being so chosen that inresponse to the rotation of thecylinder colored spots which represent a comma and-sub-dividing signs for themumber visible through the second row of windows appear successively in the various windows of the first row.

In a modificationthe colormarks on the surface of the manually. rotatable cylinder can be arranged along more than-two parallel helices so" as to afiord a group of number sub-dividing signs which are shiftable simultaneously without changing the distances between them.

By the provision of a continuous color band instead of discrete color dots the cost of manufacture can be reduced.

The sign-windows can be square, rectangular, circular, or in the shape of a written comma. The position of the individual sign windows if of square or rectangular shape is preferably oblique with respect to the row of number-windows of the counting mechanism, so as to conform with the inclination of the helix of the color spots or bands, whereby the movement required for the setting of the cylinder can be kept small.

Advantageously, the casing of the machine is curved to correspond to the curvature of the cylindercarrying the colormarks, and the signwindows are punched out of the sheet material before it is bent to the said curvature sothat the 4 bending causes the side walls of the window apertures to flare outwardly which improves the conditions 'for"viewing the signs through the windows.

In the accompanying drawings Figs. '1 and 2 illustrate a front view'and a sectional view -respectively of an exemplary embodiment of the invention, Fig. 3 shows a modificationpartly in front View and partly in section.- Ffgki shows the developed surface of th'e cylinder'according to Fig. '3 in combination withwin'dows of circular shape. signs-appearing in the respective windows.-

In Fig. 1', a denotesthe casing of a calculating machine, adding machine or the like; having a row of windowsbthrough which the number wheels e of 'acountingmechanism are*visible. In front of the row of windows I) there is pro vided in casing 01 a row of windows '0 for the sub-' dividing signs, the windows 0 being staggered relative to thewindows Z) so that eachwindow 0 isdisposed between two-windows b. The windows c are substantially square and their position is slightlyoblique. Below the row of windows 0 and adjacent to theinner surface of the curved part of the casing a a cylinder d is rotatably supported and ispressedby two leaf springsf against" the cover to form a dust-tight'seal; An aperture p'inthe lateral Wall of the machine enables the cylinder 11 to beintroduced; and a knob g for'manual operation is mounted on the end 'of the cylinder which projects'outside the machine; Three helical bands h,'h h which may be of different colors are provided On the surface of the cylinder. The distances between thehelical' bands, which may be replaced by discrete dots,are so chosen that portionsof all the threebands appear simultaneously in; the respective "windows 0. Thus in Fig. "1 the number wheels e and the sign-windows 0. present the number 1,013,420.50.

The apertures forming the windows 0 widen outwardly in funnel fashion so that viewing of the signs is facilitated.

The size of the aperture 79 in the lateral wall of the machine corresponds to the diameter .of the cylinder (1 and the cylinder can if desired be readily replaced by another cylinder marked with helices of other colors or with a difierent spacing.

A cylinder d for the modified embodiment Figs. 5, 6, 7, show varioussub-dividing of Fig. 3 is provided with all the color dots shown on the developed cylinder surface of Fig. 4. The cylinder 01 is supported in the casing a of a calculating machine or the like, in a similar manner to that described in connection with Figs. 1 and 2. Annular grooves r are provided side by side on the cylinder d between the portion which is marked with the signs and the knob 9 and are adapted to be engaged by a spring-pressed detent t which is urged by the pressure of a spring s to enter into one or other of the grooves r according to the axial position of the cylinder, and to act as a locking device.

In the three different positions of the cylinder d as defined by the three grooves the colored dividing signs can be made visible in the windows either without or together with a comma sign, and at different distances from each other. In Fig. 4 z denotes a group of dots for comma signs of various color. The longitudinal dimension of the group is three times that of a window 0, so that at any position of the cylinder determined by the catch-members, r, t, s, a comma of one color or another is displayed in the respective window. Other helices of dots is, Z, m, n, 0, each having its distinct color are provided on the surface of cylinder (1 to represent other subdividing signs.

If the cylinder d is fully introduced into the machine so that the catch 8, t, engages the outermost or righthand groove r, the only sign that will be displayed is the comma sign 1' which appears in one of the windows 0 as shown in Fig. 5, and is displaceable from window to window to the left or to the right by suitable rotation of the cylinder.

If the cylinder (1 is shifted in the direction of the arrow so that the catch s, t, engages the intermediate groove, the comma sign i and the sub-dividing signs lc, m, 11., appear in alternate windows as shown in Fig. 6. All these signs can again be moved from window to window by the rotation of the cylinder.

Finally, when the cylinder d assumes the outermost position possible with a device according to Fig. 3, the signs Z, 0, and the comma sign 2' are displayed through every third window c as indicated in Fig. 7. In other words in this position the interval between two signs includes a pair of empty windows 0 Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we claim is:

1. In a calculating machine having an accumulator and a casing provided with ordinally spaced windows for exposing the numeral wheels thereof; a punctuating device comprising a rotatable drum having punctuation marks helically disposed about its periphery, a hand grip at one end of said drum, said casing having a longitudinally extending arcuate channel portion adjacent said windows to removably receive and support said drum, said channel portion having a series of ordinally spaced apertures intermediate said windows to expose said punctuation marks, detent means on the casing for releasably holding said drum against axial displacement while permitting rotation thereof, and resilient means for retaining said drum in the arcuate channel in said casing, rotational adjustment of said drum causing said helically arranged punctuation marks to be exposed sequentially in different ones of said aperture series.

2. In a calculating machine having an accumulator and a casing provided with ordinally spaced windows for exposing the numeral wheels thereof; a punctuating device comprising a rotatable drum having punctuation marks disposed in a plurality of helices about its periphery, a handgrip at one end of said drum, said casing having a longitudinally extending series of ordinally spaced apertures intermediate said windows, means on said casing to support said drum for rotational and axial adjustment adjacent said apertures, said drum being axially adjustable to a plurality of operative positions relative to said apertures, detent means on the casing for releasably holding the drum against axial displacement in its operative positions while permitting rotational adjustment thereof, said helices being arranged in groups, the helices in each group being uniformly spaced apart axially by a different integral multiple of the ordinal aperture spacing and each group being relatively displaced axially on the drum by distances corresponding to the distances between its operative positions, axial adjustment of said drum selecting a group of helically arranged punctuation marks for concurrent display through correspondingly spaced ones of said aperture series and rotational adjustment of said drum ordinally shifting said display in the aperture series.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein said drum supporting means comprises a longitudinally extending arcuate channel in said casing, and resilient means on the casing for retaining said drum in said channel.

HANS NEUMANN-LEZIUS. ERNST-EBERHARD WILBERG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,799,037 Bley Mar. 31, 1931 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 354,902 Germany June 15, 1922 434,146 Germany Sept. 21, 1926 452,589 Germany Nov. 17, 1927 

